Kyle Wagner

Of course this would happen. According to the New York Post, Apple is lowballing record labels for the rights to use their music in a new music streaming service.

The Post reports today that Apple is offering labels 6 cents per 100 listens. That's a far cry from the 12 cents per 100 that Pandora pays out, not to mention the approximately 22 cents services backed by traditional radio pay, and Spotify's 35 cents (or as much as 50 cents for on demand, going by other sources' numbers).

Apple's music service would presumably be paired with iTunes Match, and is described by the Post as an internet radio service, which would be different from the on-demand services (and higher on-demand rates) of Spotify or Rdio. But payouts to rights holders have recently gotten more complicated for internet radio companies like Pandora, and crazy lowball offers like this one would seem to be Apple trying to elbow its way into the business without all the complications that the other guys live through. [NY Post]